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PHEVs emit nearly five times more planet-heating emissions than official data show, as per a new report.

Growing Gap In Official and Actual CO2 Output

Statistics shows that PHEVs release just 19% less CO₂ than conventional gas and diesel cars, according to analysis carried out by a advocacy group. That differs significantly with laboratory estimates, which assumed a 75% reduction in emissions.

Researchers examined information from in-vehicle fuel consumption meters of eight hundred thousand cars sold in the EU between 2021 and 2023. The team discovered that real-world CO₂ emissions from PHEVs in 2023 were 4.9 times higher than official estimates, increased from 3.5 times in 2021.

“Actual CO2 output are rising, while official emissions are decreasing,” stated a senior researcher involved in the report. “This discrepancy is widening and poses a significant problem. As a result, PHEVs emit almost as heavily as gasoline cars.”

Key Factors Behind the Emissions Gap

Researchers linked most of the difference to overestimates of the “utility factor” – the percentage of kilometers travelled in battery mode compared to overall mileage. The team determined that just a quarter of travel was done in electric mode, while lab assumptions suggested over four-fifths.

Even, when operating in EV mode, pollution amounts were well above official estimates. That happened because electric motors were insufficiently powerful sufficient to operate alone, resulting to engines using gasoline for nearly a third of the distance covered in electric mode.

Regulatory and Financial Consequences

According to estimates, the lowballing of PHEV CO2 output enabled several major automaker companies to avoid more than €5bn in fines from 2021 and 2023, by falsely easing adherence with European Union fleet-average CO₂ standards.

Furthermore, drivers of PHEVs could pay approximately €500 extra annually in running costs than would be assumed under lab tests.

“The strong statements that manufacturers like to make about their plug-in hybrid vehicles are clearly far from the truth,” stated a transport expert. “Consumers are being misled into believing that by buying a PHEV, they are benefiting the planet and cutting money. Actually, PHEVs are little improved than standard petrol and diesel vehicles in terms of energy use, CO₂ production, and running costs.”

Political Discussion and Automotive Lobbying

Plug-in hybrid vehicles have lately been drawn again into political discussions as automakers have pressed the European Union to relax CO₂ standards. A planned ban on new combustion engine vehicles in 2035 has faced heavy pressure from the car sector and resistance from member states with significant car manufacturing.

Several high-level politicians have proposed plug-in hybrids as a possible “flexibility” option to include in the regulation.

One external energy policy specialist, who was unaffiliated with the research, called the analysis a “very useful addition” after a long period in which segments of the car sector argued there was insufficient information to accurately evaluate actual CO2 output.

“The results show, beyond any doubt, that the difference between lab and real-world PHEV energy use and CO₂ output is significantly larger than for gasoline or conventional cars,” the expert said. “Any regulatory adjustments regarding PHEVs should be made with extreme caution and in the light of that evidence.”